Jewelry clip with spring biased clamping arm and stop means therefor



Aug. 20, 1957 M. JELLINEK 2,803,119

v JEWELRY CLIP WITH SPRING BIASED CLAMPING ARM AND STOP MEANS THEREFOR Filed Oct. 27, 1954 INVENTOR Map/m5 Jemima/a BY wwgw ATTORNEYS JEWELRY CLIP WIT H SPRING BIASED CLAMPING ARM AND STOP MEANS THEREFOR Markus Jeilinek, Larchmont, N. r.

Application October 27, 1954, Serial No. 464,998

2 Claims. (Cl. 63-44) The present invention relates to clip jewelry and more especially to clips for ear rings.

It is among the objects of the invention to provide a jewelry clip of the above type which is simple in construction and which is sufiiciently rugged to avoid distortion or breakage in use, which clip admits of adjustment of the limiting position to which it is resiliently urged, and corresponding adjustment of the resiliently applied pressure for security and comfort in wear of the article when embodied in an ear ring, and which also admits of instant manual displacement of the clip away from the face of the jewelry article for facility in application and removal and instant automatic return to operative position upon withdrawing the hand from the clip.

In the accompanying drawings in which is shown one of various possible embodiments of the several features of the invention,

Fig. 1 is a rear view of an article of clip jewelry, shown in position of wear.

Fig. 2 is a view in longitudinal cross section taken on line 22 of Fig. 1, and illustrating in dash lines the position of the clip in application to and removal from the ear.

Referring now to the drawings, there is shown an ear ring having any design of ornamental face member 10, illustratively shown of scalloped form, one of countless possible forms. Welded or brazed, illustratively to the hub 11 of the face plate and thus firmly anchored in place is the end illustratively formed as a circular hub 12 on the inner leg 13 of a U-shaped bracket B whose outer leg 14 is spaced by a substantial distance, illustratively three-eighths inch or more from its aflixed leg 13. The free end of the outer leg 14 of the bracket B extends well beyond or above the hub 12 at the end of the anchored leg 13 of the bracket B.

Pivoted preferably to the free end of the bracket leg 14 is clip jaw 15 which is biased inward, resiliently to press the ear lobe against the hub 11, 12 at the back of the face member 10. Preferably the clip is in the form of a lever 15 that has a disk enlargement 16 at its outer face to engage the thin part of the Wearers ear lobe and to press it toward the hub 12 at the end of the inner leg 13 of the bracket B. While the clip lever 15 may itself be of resilient construction, it is preferred that this lever be rigid and that the spring action be aiforded by a suitable spring hinge. Preferably, as shown in the drawings, the bracket leg 14 has a pair of integral loops or eyes 17 and the clip lever 15 has a pair of integral loops or eyes 18, all said eyes encompassing a pintle pin 19 about which a coil spring 20 interposed between eyes 17 presses at one end 20 against the end of the bracket leg 14 and at the other end 20 against the hinge end of the lever 15, thereby resiliently to urge the lever inward toward the face plate.

Afiixed to the lever 15 near its free end and desirably Welded in place at the disk enlargement 16 is a rod 21 q es Patent "14-of thebracketB to protrude outward therebeyond.

This rod desirably has a small integral head 23 at its v extremity.

'The rod 21, the shank of which is desirably threaded as at 24,-isencompassed by a nut 25 -in-the form-of a fiat disk, desirably knurled or scalloped as at 25 for convenient engagement by the nails of the thumb and finger to efiect any desired adjustment in the tension of the spring 20 and in the limiting or normal position of the clip jaw 15.

To apply the ear ring, the user grips the nut 25 with the nail of the thumb and finger and draws the rod outward to displace the lever 15 from the rear face of the ear ring (as shown in dash lines in Fig. 2), so that the ear ring may thus readily he slipped over the ear lobe to desired position. Upon letting go the nut, the spring 20 resiliently urges the lever 15 inwardly to grip the ear lobe between the disk enlargement 16 and the hub 11, 12 securely to maintain the ear ring in place on the ear lobe, with no danger of looseness or loss.

By turning the knurled nut 25 to desired extent, the

I limiting position of the clip jaw 15 and the tension of the spring 20 may be delicately adjusted to assure adequate pressure with complete comfort to the wearer. Security of retention of the ear ring on the ear lobe is assured by the fact that the thin part of the ear lobe is gripped and any tendency for the ear ring to be pulled off is resisted by the braking effect of the thickened rim portion of the ear lobe. A very substantial leverage action would have to be exerted to cause such thick part of the lobe to cam the clip lever 15 outward against the resistance of spring 20 sufliciently for the ear ring to become loosened or lost.

The head 23 precludes screwing oil or separating the knurled nut 25, and said head might alternatively be used for purchase by the finger nails in displacing lever 15 for application or removal of the ear ring with respect to the ear lobe.

Thus an ear ring clip is afforded which affords secure retention in place on the ear lobe and without looseness or loss and with entire comfort.

The ear ring clip of the present invention has the advantage of affording an adjustment in the tension of the clip-closing spring and at the same time adjustably assuring a limit in the approach of the clip to the face element and therefore guards against excessive compression of the ear lobe when the ear ring is in place.

As changes could be made in the above construction, and different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope of the claims, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. An ear ring clip comprising a face member, a bracket rigidly affixed to the rear of said face member, said bracket extending rearward from said face member in substantially a U-conformation, an ear ring clip jaw, comprising a lever pivotally mounted to the end of the outer arm of the bracket, spring means associated with the pivot mount of the lever and urging the same inward toward the face plate to operative or ear-gripping position, a substantially straight threaded rod rigidly atfixed to said lever near the free or ear-gripping end thereof and extending outward through an elongated port in the outer arm of the bracket, said port being of a length substantially greater than the diameter of the rod, an

adjustment disc of diameter substantially greater than the length of said port, threaded about said rod at the outer face of the bracket, in face-to-face engagement with said bracket and serving for adjustment of the limiting or ear-gripping position of the lever and useful also for manually pivoting the lever outward towardthe outer arm of the bracket for facility in applying and removing the ear ring.

2. The combination recited in claim 1 inwhich the rod has a head at its outer end to preclude removal of the adjustment disk therefrom and useful also for manu- 4 ally drawing the clip outward in the application and removal of the ear ring clip.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 893,048 Balzer July 14, 1908 1,139,585 Scheu May 18, 1915 1,973,282 Brush Sept. 11, 1934 FOREIGN PATENTS 2,554 Great Britain Oct. 4, 1866 

